Page 28 - Absolute Predestination With Observations On The Divine Attributes

redeemed and everlastingly saved by Christ."

(2) It sometimes and more rarely signifies "that gracious and almighty act of the
Divine Spirit, whereby God actually and visibly separates His elect from the

world by effectual calling." This is nothing but the manifestation and partial
fulfillment of the former election, and by it the objects of predestinating grace
are sensibly led into the communion of saints, and visibly added to the number

of God's declared professing people. Of this our Lord makes mention: "Because
I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you" (John
15.19). Where it should seem the choice spoken of does not refer so much to
God's eternal, immanent act of election as His open manifest one, whereby He

powerfully and efficaciously called the disciples forth from the world of the
unconverted, and quickened them from above in conversion.

(3) By election is sometimes meant, "God's taking a whole nation, community
or body of men into external covenant with Himself by giving them the
advantage of revelation, or His written word, as the rule of their belief and

practice, when other nations are without it." In this sense the whole body of the
Jewish nation was indiscriminately called elect, because that "unto them were
committed the oracles of God" (Deut. 7.6). Now all that are thus elected are not

therefore necessarily saved, but many of them may be, and are, reprobates, as
those of whom our Lord says (Matt. 13.20), that they "hear the word, and anon
with joy receive it," etc. And the apostle says, "They went out from us" (i.e.,
being favoured with the same Gospel revelation we were, they professed

themselves true believers, no less than we), "but they were not of us" (i.e., they
were not, with us, chosen of God unto everlasting life, nor did they ever in

reality possess that faith of His operation which He gave to us, for if they had in
this sense "been of us, they would, no doubt, have continued with us" (1 John
2.19), they would have manifested the sincerity of their professions and the
truth of their conversion by enduring to the end and being saved. And even this

external revelation, though it is not necessarily connected with eternal
happiness, is nevertheless productive of very many and great advantages to the
people and places where it is vouchsafed, and is made known to some nations

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and kept back from others, "according to the good pleasure of Him who
worketh all things after the counsel of His own will."

(4) And, lastly, election sometimes signifies "the temporary designation of some
person or persons to the filling up some particular station in the visible church

or office in civil life." So Judas was chosen to the apostleship (John 6.70), and